Thrustmaster Sent Me A Gaming Wheel To Test And This Is What I Think Of It So Far

At the end of last year Thrustmaster sent over a couple of gaming wheels for us to get to grips with. We’ve got something pretty special planned for the wheels with the guys behind Project Cars, but since the game keeps getting delayed, I thought I’d just update you on how I’m finding the wheels so far.

Overall, I’m really enjoying my time with the 458 replica wheel (George has the T300RS pictured above). I’ve been using it on my Xbox One with Forza 5 and on PC with Euro Truck Simulator. Those geeks among you who also play ETS will know that it’s incredibly addictive for reasons no one can actually explain. I’m not very good at it because I’m too impatient and ruin a 12 hour haul by overtaking a line of cars on a country lane and end up colliding head on with a poor chap in a badly rendered hatchback. But I’m getting distracted…

It’s with ETS that I’ll start, though. It’s hardly a major test, considering you’re supposed to stick to speed limits and such, but it works really well. There are loads of buttons, which makes it nicely customisable. For example, I’ve mapped the indicators to the gearshift paddles. Having a proper throttle pedal also makes it easier to maintain a steady speed, though there is a slight dead spot at the top of the pedal.

Over onto my career as a pixelated Jensen Button with Forza 5, and this is where the wheel really comes into its own. In my opinion you’ll never quite manage to feel really immersed in a racing game (until you hook up Oculus Rift and sit in a seat that can mimic g-forces, perhaps), but the wheel really does remove one level of detachment from the game world.

Nailing apexes and eking out extra tenths from your lap time is so much more satisfying when you’ve got a wheel between your hands and pedals at your feet. The wheel is a decent size, though lock-to-lock could be a little smaller - often while in cockpit view the in-game wheel will hit full lock but you’re still turning. It can be slightly disorientating in slower, tighter corners, though isn’t too noticeable the majority of the time.

The pedals are probably the only thing that kind of let the deal down. For a start, without a proper mount the box lifts every time you push a pedal; fortunately I’ve wedged mine between the wall and a supporting bar in my desk. There’s also the aforementioned dead spot at the top of the throttle, and the brakes giving no feedback makes it difficult to nail corners (especially in Forza 5 with its terrible braking dynamics).

The latter should be fixed soon with a new set of pedals released recently by Thrustmaster, catchily named T3PA-PRO ((pictured above)). They’re a set of metal pedals with a spring-loaded brake, which will hopefully make braking more realistic. We’ll let you know once we’ve had a go.

We’re interested to know how you guys get on with your gaming wheels. Are they worth the expense, or should you stick to controllers?